Forest Fires rage widely

I'm used to hearing about North American forest fires in our summer and Australian fires in theirs, like taking turns. It's disorienting, even overwhelming, to have The American West, Canadian North around Hudson Bay, Russia, Sweden, etc all burning, and Australia at the same time.

The New South Wales rural fire service has said the danger period for bushfires, which normally begins on 1 October in most areas of the state, has already begun statewide,...

“We are seeing more extreme fires, on top of that there is storm damage, flooding and concerns around the increasing medical role played by firefighters,” he told Guardian Australia.

“So, in the short term, the question around more resources is pivotal. But we are a Band-aid on a gangrenous stump on this issue. We need a concerted effort both in Australia and internationally to tackle climate change....

“The kicker is that the fires are becoming more difficult to control,” he said. “We are seeing a move towards fire acting more unpredictably, moving very quickly and destructively. There’s only so much you can do with a fire engine if there’s a 10km wall of flame heading towards you.”

Casey said firefighters were expecting a bushfire season “every bit as bad” as last year, when fires tore through the Blue Mountains and the central coast. [emphasis mine]